What is Series B?
In B2B sales development, “Series B” refers to companies that have raised their second major institutional funding round and are scaling beyond proven product‑market fit. For list-building, Series B is a powerful firmographic filter: these companies typically have fresh capital, aggressive growth targets, and expanding sales and marketing teams, making them prime targets for outbound prospecting and higher-intent pipeline generation.
Understanding Series B in B2B Sales
Within B2B sales development and list-building, Series B is used as a firmographic attribute to prioritize accounts. SDR and RevOps teams regularly filter databases like Crunchbase, PitchBook, ZoomInfo, Apollo.io, or LinkedIn Sales Navigator by funding stage to pull fresh lists of Series B accounts in their ideal industries and geographies. The logic is simple: after a Series B raise, leadership is under pressure to hit ambitious ARR milestones, which often translates into larger budgets for sales acceleration tools, outsourced SDR programs, and revenue‑impact services.
Series B companies also tend to ramp up sales and marketing investment. Benchmarks from SaaS Capital show growing B2B startups spend roughly 15% of revenue on sales and around 10% on marketing.saastr.com At the same time, SDR teams are responsible for a substantial share of pipeline-studies from TOPO, The Bridge Group, and others find SDRs typically generate 30-45% (and in many cases more) of total B2B pipeline with median annual pipeline per SDR around $3M.gradient.works When you combine new capital, rising GTM spend, and heavy reliance on outbound SDRs, Series B becomes a high‑value signal for outbound list-building.
The role of Series B in sales strategy has evolved with market conditions. During the zero‑interest‑rate boom, Series B rounds were abundant and often oversized; targeting “recently funded” companies alone could yield meaningful results. Today, capital is more disciplined and the median wait time between Series B and Series C has stretched to roughly 800+ days, forcing companies to be more efficient with their spend.carta.com Modern sales organizations now treat Series B as one signal among many-combining it with revenue, headcount, tech stack, and intent data to build higher‑quality account lists.
For B2B sales development teams, using Series B in list-building is ultimately about prioritization and relevance. A well‑designed “Series B” segment allows SDRs to tailor messaging around growth, hiring, and scalability, reference the funding event credibly, and time outreach to when buying cycles are naturally opening. Agencies like SalesHive operationalize this by continuously monitoring new Series B announcements, updating account lists, and launching multi‑channel outbound programs that turn funding events into predictable meetings and pipeline.
Key Benefits
Higher Purchasing Power and Budget Readiness
Series B companies have just raised substantial capital and are under pressure to deploy it toward growth. That often means larger, pre-approved budgets for sales productivity tools, services, and partnerships, so outbound teams see shorter budget objections and faster deal cycles when targeting this segment.
Stronger Fit for Sales Acceleration Solutions
At Series B, leadership is focused on building scalable sales engines rather than experimenting with basic go-to-market motions. This makes them a strong fit for solutions like SDR outsourcing, data enrichment, and sales engagement platforms, increasing conversion rates from first meeting to opportunity.
Clear Trigger Events for Timely Outreach
Funding announcements provide precise trigger events for list-building and outreach cadences. By tracking new Series B rounds and prioritizing these accounts, SDR teams can reach buyers just as they are planning headcount expansion, new tools, and process changes, dramatically improving reply and meeting rates.
Better Segmentation and Personalization
Using Series B as a firmographic filter allows teams to create tighter segments by stage, growth profile, and likely priorities. SDRs can personalize messaging around scaling pain points-for example, ramping SDR teams, entering new markets, or tightening sales operations-leading to more relevant conversations.
Predictable Pipeline Contribution
Because Series B companies share similar structural needs-scaling ARR, building sales leadership, and formalizing processes-they behave more predictably as a segment. This makes pipeline modeling more reliable and helps revenue leaders attribute a consistent portion of new opportunities to Series B–focused outbound.
Key Statistics
Best Practices
Combine Series B with Multi-Dimensional ICP Filters
Use Series B as a starting point, then refine lists by industry, ACV band, geo, tech stack, headcount, and revenue. This multi-dimensional approach yields smaller, higher-intent segments that are more likely to convert into qualified pipeline.
Monitor Funding Events Continuously and Refresh Weekly
Automate alerts for new Series B rounds from data providers and ingest them into your CRM or data warehouse. Refresh these lists at least weekly so SDRs are always working the freshest accounts while momentum is highest.
Tailor Messaging to Growth and Scale Challenges
Build playbooks that explicitly reference Series B realities: aggressive ARR targets, hiring ramp, new geo launches, and the need for repeatable outbound. This context shows you understand their stage and positions your offering as a lever to de-risk scale, not just another tool.
Prioritize Economic Buyers and Emerging Revenue Leaders
At Series B, roles like VP of Sales, Head of Revenue Operations, and VP of Marketing often gain more budget authority. Aim outbound at these titles first and use multi-threading with adjacent stakeholders (Sales Enablement, SDR Leaders) to secure consensus.
Segment Cadences by Recency of Funding
Create distinct cadences for 0-30 days, 30-90 days, and 90-365 days post-funding. Early windows should emphasize strategy and planning cycles; later windows can focus on optimization, efficiency, and hitting the next-round metrics.
Align SDR Capacity with Series B Opportunity Volume
Benchmark how much pipeline each SDR is expected to create and match that against the number of new Series B accounts entering your TAM. If outbound SDRs typically generate around $3M in pipeline per year, plan territory and account coverage accordingly.gradient.works
Related Tools & Resources
Crunchbase
Data platform that tracks funding rounds, investors, and company profiles-commonly used to filter and export lists of newly funded Series B accounts for outbound prospecting.
PitchBook
Private-market intelligence platform providing detailed financing histories, valuations, and investor data that sales teams use to identify and prioritize Series B targets.
ZoomInfo
B2B contact and company database offering firmographic filters, direct dials, and intent signals, enabling SDRs to build enriched Series B account lists with verified contacts.
Apollo.io
Prospecting and engagement platform that combines funding and firmographic filters with email and dialer capabilities to run outbound campaigns against Series B segments.
LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Advanced LinkedIn search and alert tool that allows reps to track leadership changes at Series B companies, save accounts, and identify decision-makers for outreach.
Salesforce
CRM platform where revenue teams manage Series B account lists, track funding-triggered opportunities, and report on pipeline sourced by stage-based segments.
Partner with SalesHive for Series B
For revenue leaders who don’t have the bandwidth to stand up or scale an internal SDR team, SalesHive’s US‑based and Philippines‑based SDR pods plug in as a fully managed extension of your sales org. We handle list-building, outbound strategy, messaging, and execution while you keep control of qualification criteria and handoff rules.
With 100,000+ meetings booked for 1,500+ clients, SalesHive has deep pattern recognition around what resonates with Series B buyers-from how to reference the funding event credibly to how many touches it takes to convert a new Series B account into a live opportunity. That experience, combined with flexible month‑to‑month engagements and risk‑free onboarding, gives you a scalable way to capitalize on every new Series B announcement in your market.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does Series B mean in the context of B2B sales development?
In B2B sales development, Series B refers to companies that have raised their second major institutional funding round and are moving from early traction to scaling. For SDRs and RevOps teams, it's a high-value firmographic attribute used in data tools and CRMs to prioritize accounts that are likely expanding headcount, processes, and tech stacks.
Why do sales teams prioritize Series B companies in their target lists?
Series B companies typically have fresh capital, aggressive ARR targets, and leadership committed to building a repeatable revenue engine. They are more open to investing in tools, services, and outsourcing that help them hit growth milestones, so outbound into this segment often sees higher meeting acceptance and opportunity rates compared to earlier-stage startups.
How can I build a high-quality Series B prospect list?
Start by pulling Series B accounts from funding databases like Crunchbase or PitchBook, then enrich them in platforms such as ZoomInfo or Apollo.io with firmographics and contacts. Next, filter by your ICP-industry, employee count, tech stack, and geography-before routing accounts into your CRM with clear ownership and stage-specific outbound cadences.
Are Series B companies always a good fit for my product or service?
Not necessarily. Series B indicates growth and budget, but it doesn't guarantee a need or strong use case for your solution. You should still qualify by pain, timing, tech stack, and buying persona, and be prepared to deprioritize funded accounts that don't align with your ideal customer profile.
How quickly should we reach out after a Series B funding announcement?
The first 30-60 days after a funding announcement are critical, as leadership is often finalizing hiring plans, tech investments, and new initiatives. Ideally, your data and outbound processes should allow SDRs or partners like SalesHive to begin personalized outreach within a few days, while you can still influence planning rather than just respond to RFPs.
What messaging works best for engaging Series B prospects?
Effective Series B messaging connects your value directly to scaling challenges: ramping new reps faster, entering new markets, improving outbound efficiency, or tightening forecasting. Use concise, outcome-oriented language, reference relevant customer examples at similar stages, and keep calls to action focused on short, exploratory conversations rather than hard sells.
